Seite 4: Starcraft 2 - Exclusive interview with lead designer Dustin Browder

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A Protoss Protector is blocking a ramp with energy fields.

GameStar:
Speaking about the new economy mechanics like the abilities of the Zerg queen: What was the general idea behind those?

Dustin Browder:
We want Starcraft to be very much about the tension between your army and your base. Warcraft 3 was largely focussed on your army, which felt right for that game. But in Starcraft, base building is an important part of the game, so being able to manage you economy is a key skill for your success. So while our automation was good and positive, it removed a lot of focus from your base. Instead of taking out all the automation and making you do more klicks, we thought it would be more enjoyable to give you more interesting choices within your base. That's why we implemented the economy mechanics to allow for new strategies.

GameStar:
In earlier versions the Protoss used the Dark Pylon to boost their economy. Why was it removed?

Dustin Browder:
It provided a little bit of complexity for not enough benefits.

GameStar:
Instead you added the »Chrono Boost« to the Nexus. Did you think the Protoss were too slow at the beginning of the game?

Dustin Browder:
We wanted a reason for Protoss players to focus on their base. We tried a lot of economy mechanics for the Protoss, and this was the one that provided the most interesting strategic choices. Because it forces you to choose between accelerating production at your nexus, gateway, stargate or robotic factory, or boosting upgrades at your cybernetics core or forge. So the strategic choice is not whether to use the chrono boost but what to use it on. Almost every building in your base becomes an option. This is one of our goals for Starcraft 2: Players who want to focus on their base get a benefit from it. And players who want to focus on their armies get a benefit from that. Focussing on both is very difficult, so it makes the game very hard to master.

The Terran nuke will reappear in Starcraft 2.

GameStar:
In the initial Starcraft certain units were doing less damage to certain other units. Now there is a specific amount of bonus damage. Why did you change that system?

Dustin Browder:
In the original Starcraft there were different weapon types that did 100 percent damage to certain unit types, 75 percent damage to other unit types and 50 percent damage to other unit types. The units were divided into small, medium and large. We wanted to make that system a lot more transparent and obvious. Before, you had to be a hardcore player or surf the web to understand how the system worked. In Starcraft 2, we put the damage modifiers in the user interface and simplified them a little more. So instead of doing 50 or 75 or 100 percent damage, we added a single damage bonus against certain unit types. That makes it more clear to the player which units to use against which other units.

GameStar:
You also changed the resource system be adding high-yield crystals.

Dustin Browder:
The high-yield crystals are there to create more strategic choice for players. We are placing them at locations that are difficult to get to or difficult to defend. So it's up to the player to decide which expansion he is going to go for after he's taken the expansion close to his base. Do you want to take another expansion that is relatively safe? Or do you take one that's worth a lot more in resources but that's also very difficult to defend? Do you want to commit to destroying the rocks to get access to the high-yield expansion? That might take your army into a position were it's vulnerable or unable to defend your base and threaten the enemy. So the high-yield crystals create a lot more choice for the players.

New: Yellow crystals and dual vespin geysers.

GameStar:
And what about the two vespin geysers at every base?

Dustin Browder:
We did that for the same reasons. You now get the additional choice about when to grab the second source of gas. When to build the second Refinery is a very important strategic choice in the early game, especially when it comes to some of the rushing strategies. Building the first and second refinery can also give clues to other players that are scouting your base. So, if I see a Terran with two Barracks and two Refineries, I can guess there might be some reapers in my future. Whereas with a Protoss players it could mean that he intends to get the stalkers a little more quickly. On the other hand, Terrans with only a single refinery are not really serious about the reaper rush. So the double refineries give more choices to the players, they it also give away their intent.

GameStar:
The Terran Thor has undergone many changes in development history. Now it's an artillery unit with anti-air defense. We like to call it the mammoth tank of Starcraft. But with the siege tank, the Terrans already got an artillery unit. So what's the purpose of the Thor?

Dustin Browder:
The Thor's the Thor, man! It has a lot of uses, because it is an all-round unit. But you also pay for that. You can compare the Thor to the Battle Cruiser. The Cruiser has got the Yamato Canon which makes it a siege weapon. At the same time, the Cruiser is powerful against ground and air units. But it is expensive, so you pay for its being all-round. Like the Battle Cruiser, the Thor has weaknesses. It is very vulnerable against many small units. If you're up against a lot of zerglings, you're going to have a bad day with your Thors.